The present invention relates generally to authentication techniques for communication and/or data networks, and more particularly to a method and hybrid system, which combines distributed and centralized infrastructures for authentication of communication and/or data networks.
Authentication techniques are well known for verifying the identities of participants in secured communications and other data transfers. The need for improved authentication has grown with the proliferation of data processing systems. These systems typically have authentication techniques with either a distributed infrastructure or a centralized infrastructure, but not both or a hybrid thereof. The distributed infrastructures and the centralized infrastructures have been extensively and separately developed by persons skilled in the art. However, no single authentication system has been developed utilizing both a distributed infrastructure and a centralized infrastructure. Also, no method has been developed for migrating a network from a distributed infrastructure to a centralized infrastructure.
Therefore, a need exists for a hybrid authentication system that combines a distributed infrastructure and centralized infrastructure for optimizing the advantages provided by each architecture.